HAPPIEST COUNTRIES AND AMERICAN STATES

This year, Finland ranked #1 as the happiest country.  For comparison, the U.S. fell four slots to #18 — falling four spots from last year and five from two years ago — "in part because of the ongoing epidemics of obesity, substance abuse and untreated depression," according to World Happiness Report co-editor and Columbia University professor Jeffrey Sachs.*
Finland is followed by: #2 Norway (#1 the previous year), #3 Denmark, #4 Iceland, #5 Switzerland, #6 Netherlands, #7 Canada, #8 New Zealand, #9 Sweden, #10 Australia.  Note all these countries are the closest to the North Pole or south Pole.


Happiness has also been rated for the U.S. states:
The well-being scores comprised the following five elements:
Purpose: Liking what you do each day and being motivated to achieve your goals
Social: Having supportive relationships and love in your life
Financial: Managing your economic life to reduce stress and increase security
Community: Liking where you live, feeling safe, and having pride in your community
Physical: Having good health and enough energy to get things done daily**
Here are the top 10 states for well being in a Gallup Poll:**

1. South Dakota (64.10)
2. Vermont (64.09)
3. Hawaii (63.39)
4. Minnesota (63.12)
5. North Dakota (63.06)
6. Colorado (62.87)
7. New Hampshire (62.80)
8. Idaho (62.79)
9. Utah (62.75)
10. Montana (62.56)

Except for Hawaii and perhaps Utah, you will note all are northern states and all are red or purple states.  Notably missing are California and New York, much to my surprise, but there are other polls.  In other polls, states move around in the ranking; however, Minnesota, for example, remains in the top 10.  Another Poll is by Wallet Hub on happiest states.**  The third column shows the rating in the Gallup Poll.

1	Minnesota	4
2	Utah	9
3	Hawaii	3
4	California
5	Nebraska
6	New Jersey
7	South Dakota	1
8	Iowa
9	Wisconsin
10	New Hampshire	7

And here are the bottom 10 with scores (The first column is the average score, and the following three are different categories.:

40	New Mexico	45.53	34	45	39
41	Alaska	45.43	23	49	50
42	Tennessee	44.29	45	17	38
43	Missouri	43.86	41	26	44
44	Kentucky	41.69	46	35	37
45	Mississippi	38.89	42	46	47
46	Arkansas	37.33	50	28	35
47	Alabama	36.60	47	43	42
48	Louisiana	35.35	43	50	48
49	Oklahoma	34.97	48	44	43
50	West Virginia	34.89	49	48	31

Kansas is rated #27.  Remember they had a big tax reduction that they had to back off of.
GOODWYN: Brownback had promised the tax cuts could spur up to 25,000 new jobs a year but that proved wildly optimistic. Kansas actually lost jobs the first year. Roads went from a 10 to a 50-year maintenance schedule. Nevertheless, the legislature was still forced to raid the State Employees' Retirement Fund, then it raised the sales tax twice. With the state lagging behind its neighbors economically, public school financing a mess and budget chaos in the Capitol, Governor Brownback's popularity fell off a cliff. Last year, a wave of moderate Republicans swept into office at the right wing's expense. They partnered with Democrats, rescinded Brownback's tax cuts and overrode his veto. After four years, the great Kansas tax experiment was over.***
West Virginia (ranked #50) recently had a teacher's strike over school funding.  Arizona (ranked #21) too had teachers demanding a 20% pay hike. Oklahoma (#49) and Kentucky (#44)  tax cuts spurred a teacher's strike.  You will note that the bottom 10 states are heavily populated by southern states and red states, generally with low wages.  The two states getting the most Federal government aid are Alaska (#41) and Mississippi ((#45).

And lastly, what is the American community with the greatest well being? It is Naples-Immokalee-Marco Island, FL (ranked #1 or #2 in every category), though Florida as a state has a declining well being.****


* https://www.cnbc.com/2018/03/16/these-are-the-top-10-happiest-countries-in-the-world.html
http://worldhappiness.report/ed/2018/
** https://www.cnbc.com/2018/02/23/the-top-10-happiest-and-healthiest-states-in-the-us.html
https://wallethub.com/edu/happiest-states/6959/
*** https://www.npr.org/2017/12/13/570387479/kansas-2012-tax-cut-experiment-could-serve-as-a-cautionary-tale
**** https://wellbeingindex.sharecare.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/Gallup-Sharecare-State-of-American-Well-Being_2017-Community-Rankings_vFINAL.pdf